Getafe taught Barcelona a lesson on Saturday about the importance of having a game plan and an identity.
Pressing aggressively and being physical, even playing dirty, was predictably part of the strategy. Barcelona should have been ready for it. They should have devised tactics to neutralize it.
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The international break can be disruptive but it’s not an excuse.
Superior talent should trump physical play any day of the week. But without energy and desire, talent counts for very little.
The truth is that Barcelona walked into the trap that Getafe set. Could the referee have done more manage the physicality? It’s up to the referee. Some will and some won’t, Barcelona don’t get to choose that.
Instead of villainizing Nyom, Barcelona should start this season off by looking in the mirror. Other teams have recognized that the Blaugrane are low on confidence, soft, and after the loss to Getafe, without organization.
Ronald Koeman, like many managers around the world, has copied the 4-2-3-1 formation of Bayern Munich. This was a good move. It has a lot of potential for Barcelona with the players that are on the roster.
But a formation needs tactics. Bayern Munich looks dynamic with it because the players are given a role, and they are picking apart opponents by understanding and implementing it at a high level.
For one, they are a possession side who loves to play out of the back and then play with a high line in their opponents half of the field.
Getafe pressed high. This should have played into Barcelona’s hands, but on Saturday they seemed utterly incapable of holding onto the ball.
It’s also a problem of personnel. It’s true that Antoine Griezmann and Ousmane Dembele had bad games, but to be fair no one had a good game for Barcelona.
The true question is why some of the players are incapable of performing to their world class standards.
For that you need to look at what surrounds them.
For starters, the fullback contributions have been abysmal. Sergino Dest did a fine job covering for Jordi Alba on the left side, but this is a very short term solution. He won’t be able to provide what’s needed there, but he may be able to give the Blaugrane a significant boost on the ride side.
That brings us to Sergi Roberto who has offered nothing for years.
In modern football, the fullbacks are playmakers. Barcelona needs Dest on the right side, even if it means giving a chance to Junior Firpo on the left once he’s healthy. It’s time for Barcelona to walk away from the Roberto experiment.
The holding midfielders have also been a liability, and they are the first to blame for why Barcelona can’t hold on to the ball.
It’s a shame the Miralem Pjanic is injured because Barcelona could really use competition in this role. Even so, Koeman should give Riqui Puig and Carles Alena a chance.
The Champions League this week will be an opportunity to give them a tryout. Bottom line, Barcelona can’t tolerate the contributions they’re getting from Sergio Busquets and Frenkie de Jong at the moment.
To save the most obvious insight for last, Koeman needs to play his best players. At the moment that would be Ansu Fati and Philippe Coutinho.
A rotation will be necessary throughout the season, but not playing them on Saturday was a bad look. Pedri did well all things considered, but he is still not ready for the big role that Koeman seems intent on giving him.
Ansu and Coutinho are scoring goals and playing with energy and confidence. By playing them there’s a good chance that the rest of the team feeds off it.
The time is now for Koeman to get this right and the schedule ahead will be challenging.
It’s about tactics and player selection. If the right decisions are made the Catalans have a good chance of competing for the La Liga title.
If not it could be a long and dark season ahead.